Wasteland Echoer

April 13th, 557th year of the New Lunar Calendar.

Crusted Federation, Area S in the southern part of the Extreme Cold Zone, abandoned city point.

"Are you coming to explore the ruins of this city, boy? You don't look like a soldier or a local. Are you a traveler like those 'wilderness hunters' or 'relic hunters'?" Sit down. Asked the man who was fiddling with the burning fire in front of him at the door of a large abandoned building.

"I...are indeed not a soldier, nor a Crusader. If we look at the place where I officially 'became a human', my father's country is the Zine Empire in the south. Strictly speaking...well, I am a Japanese Nirvana." The young man who speaks young, soft and very fluent Kreuz German is Luonie.

Since leaving Xinfeng Town, he has been wandering in the extreme cold zone for nearly a month. During this period, in addition to purchasing limited food with "Federal Military Coupons" and "New Rubles" in some villages and settlements controlled by the semi-lost people, At other times, Luo Nie relies on his superior physical fitness to hunt in the wild to survive.

Originally, he planned to go straight up the K-I01 highway and the long-abandoned old northern railway line, all the way to "Magic City", and then go to the "Baislunai area" surrounded by the "wind wall" In the area where dragons are said to roam, look for traces of Wright.

But before I left, Igor told him that based on the small amount of old information found under the instructions of "Approximating the God's Core", the wind wall there was most likely a masterpiece of the peak technological product of the old empire. If you want to truly break through it, It is best to first find the evolution platform corresponding to the "Tianshu" in the Big Dipper.

The old empire materials, laboratories and technological products that remain there can probably lift the wind wall. Moreover, if the specific location of the "evolution platform" can be used to make a deal with the Federal Council, Igor believes that Chief Vasily will be able to issue an order. Satisfied with the price.

But unfortunately, the "core that approximates the gods" can only provide a general direction, and the specific existence needs to be felt with feet.

Therefore, Luo Nicai chose to abandon the original route and instead headed directly northwest to avoid the North Mamous River Basin.

After a short stay in the previous settlement, Luo Nie had been walking in the wasteland that was losing the warmth of spring for half a month. When he entered the ruins of the city, the military cotton coat on his body was already covered with dark red dirt and had several cracks. Make a hole and turn the cotton out.

His face had not been washed for at least a week, and the white background had long been taken over by blood, scabs, and black ash, and it looked like a common "battle-damaged wind."

After answering the question of the man in front of him, Luonie opened his military backpack and took out a few pieces of snow rabbit meat wrapped in cloth bags. After scratching it with a saber a few times, he directly penetrated it with a sharpened wooden stick and placed it on the fire. Grilled.

Seeing the sparks jumping outward like the legendary wilderness elves from the burning firewood, and the crackling sound that seemed to be filled with warmth, Luo Nie gradually became calm and warm in her heart.

The life of traveling in the wilderness is not pleasant, especially when you are alone, and you encounter scattered "unintentional" attacks from time to time. It is easy to be mentally polluted, and then behave in extreme ways.

But as long as you meet human beings and realize the fact that you are "born as a human being", even if you are in a battle, you can neutralize your bestiality and weaken your mental pollution.

The man in front of him was named Marco. He was born into a humble family and had no surname.

At this moment, he was wearing a heavy dark yellow fur coat covered with dirt and a rabbit fur ear protection hat. Next to him was an old-fashioned "Ice Tiger" brand single-shot rifle. It was about the early days of the Third Era, Queen Anna III. A model that was already in mass production.

However, Marco only wore a leather glove on his right hand, while his left hand was wrapped in a slightly yellowed and bleeding bandage. Judging from the blood stains, the wound was not small, probably from a recent battle.

His face is full of fatigue and vicissitudes of life. Overall, he looks like a standard Uncle Crusted, stern and dignified, with a big beard, a high nose, blue eyes, a straight chin, and everything on his face. Intersecting wrinkles and scars, and a vague double-headed eagle burn near the cheek near the neck.

He is a "gold digger" who wanders among the ruins of cities in the extremely cold zone S. For more than 500 years after the New Year, in addition to the original cities of the old empire, the newly born Crusted Federation was here successively. Many settlements of various sizes have been established, but today, except for a few small villages, large cities have almost been abandoned and have become playgrounds for "careless people" and "alien monsters".

There are naturally many warehouses, bunkers and abandoned residences that have not been "discovered" underground in these abandoned cities. There are many weapons, cans and tools inside, which have become the talk of the lost, semi-lost and human teams wandering here. "Gold", people who search for urban ruins and relics are uniformly called "gold diggers".

Marco is one of the leaders of a group of "gold diggers" here called the "Wild Tourist Group". When he first walked into this abandoned city, Luo Nie heard " "Words of Prayer" confirmed that he was also a believer of the "Lord of Mechanics" and was facing a life threat. Due to the existence of "reason", he stepped forward and killed the "four-armed alien heartless man" and saved him. I got him off and temporarily hid in the center of the abandoned city, which seemed to be the dilapidated hall of the old music theater, to rest and look for an opportunity to leave.

Since there are "alien unintentional people" wandering around outside from time to time, Luo Nie's "Crazy Bear" pistol is always firmly attached to his waist.

However, along with the blazing flames and the rapidly spreading aroma of meat, a few rays of bright light gradually penetrated the clouds and ruins, falling on a machine in the abandoned theater hall that had lost its face and was covered in dust and dirt. Only the left half of the statue is full.

Smelling the increasingly strong aroma, Luo Jie tore off a small piece of snow rabbit meat and put it in his mouth to taste it. Feeling that it was almost cooked, he took it off the fire, tore half of it and handed it to Marco.

However, even though Luo Jie saw him swallowing his saliva and his eyes showed an unconcealable desire, after a slight struggle, he still rejected Luo Nie's kindness and said in a thick and hoarse voice:

"I...it's better not to eat."

"Why? It smells so good... Huh... Huh..." Luo Nie asked doubtfully while blowing on the meat and devouring it.

Marco moved to the backpack behind him, took out an iron box, took out a piece of dark, biscuit-like protein food, and started to nibble on it with hot water.

Feeling slightly full, Marco explained:

"We humans in the 'Wilderness Tourist Group' have an iron rule: even if they starve to death, we cannot eat animals that may be contaminated. Not to mention that these animals may be infected with the 'Unintentional' virus, even if it is ordinary pollution, It would also give us diarrhea for several days.”

"Okay..." Luo Nie said with a helpless expression:

"There are not many humans who still adhere to the old ideas. In order to avoid being infected or to maintain combat effectiveness, it is understandable."

"It's not just that." Marco said helplessly:

"If it's the provinces in the east where there are settlements, if you are infected, you still have time to inject medicine to detoxify. But here in the wild mountains, if you get sick or lose combat effectiveness, it basically means death.

"The 'gold digger' team in the wasteland does not support idlers. Once you lose your value, you will be expelled from the team, or you will be killed on the spot. If you are infected with the 'unintentional person' virus, as long as you appear even once during the quarantine period, At the slightest bit of confusion, we will release the 'break core', and with a 'bang', everything is over."

"Everything is over... then it means suicide, it means death." Luo Nie said with emotion.

"Indeed, but this is a sacrifice that must be made for the team to survive better. This place is not like those urban strongholds in the core area of ​​​​the Federation, and it can protect your life as much as possible.

"Boy, you have to know that the closer you are to death, the less valuable life is." Malkin told the story truthfully.

After swallowing the last bite of meat from the snow rabbit in his hand, Luo Nie wiped away the residue on his mouth and said with emotion:

"Indeed, death and life are always opposing topics. However, sometimes human death is worthless, and death is just death; and sometimes, like those of famous artists in the Federal Heartland Province of Putoa, As the painting expresses, even if it comes suddenly, it is still great.

"But, to be honest, as long as you don't live in humiliation, death is always the worst outcome. I think this may be the reason why the 'Lord of Machines' has formulated some 'reasons' for believers."

"Luo Nie." Marco suddenly said with a serious expression:

"Under the influence of my parents, I believed in the 'Lord of Machines' at the beginning of my life, and I am willing to become His eternal and loyal believer. Although I do not completely believe that today's rescue is the arrangement of the 'Lord of Machines', but Since you saved me, I will fulfill all your requests after rejoining the team, I swear to the gods."

"Request? I plan to stay here in S Area for a few more days, and I don't mind telling you my purpose, Uncle Marco. I want to find the ruins of the 'Universal Energy Evolution Platform' in this vast icy field. Since this There are many 'gold digger' organizations, 'wilderness hunters' and 'ruin hunters' near the ruins, so I would like to get some information here.

"Moreover, in this abandoned city, among the countless ruins, I felt a strong resonance of power as soon as I entered. The power that can be sensed by the energy of the 'machine spirit' must be related to the 'machine', or even the 'master of the machine' 'Highly relevant.'

As soon as Luo Nie finished speaking, the abandoned theater hall suddenly shook violently, messy gravel kept falling, and the fire suddenly went out.

When everything barely returned to calm, Luo Nie and Marco got up and discovered that the position occupied by the statue that originally only had the left half of its body had completely collapsed, revealing a hole about ten meters in diameter.

Taking two steps closer to observe, they saw that the cave was filled with deathly silence and pure blackness like the underworld. If they listened carefully, there were also subtle, ethereal breathing sounds of large creatures.